| Subject: | Hood River; A single speed 'B' story... |
| Date: | 09/26/2005 06:00 AM |
| From: | Ken Morton |
|
The good: weather, organization - VeloShop did an awesome job, my start. The bad: the gravel pit, both run ups, the double hairpin-downhill turn. The ugly: my back. It about gave out by lap 4. Once again we car-pooled to the race, this time I drove. My teammates Jay, Jake and mom Mel rode with me. Sam had to work, so he did not come. Good for the juniors, but bad for Sam. We got to the course by 11-ish, so we had plenty of time to pre-ride the course and get warmed up. I made two laps, taking it easy on the run ups and riding around some of the barriers. I know my strengths, and my weaknesses. My back is one of my weaknesses, and I did not want to strain it before the race! I watched the start of the 45+ race (Jay), the juniors (Jake and lots of other teammates!) and the C's. The C's jammed up really bad at the gate to the ball field, and I decided I'd like to be towards the front going through the gate. I practiced some dismounts and remounts (need more practice!) and then grabbed the camera to get some shots. Jake had a great race, taking second. Jay did well, getting 12th, which is not too shabby. I hit the "blue room" for one last time and then lined up. At the start, I pushed a little and was 5th or 6th going through the gate. We were strung out single file going through, which was very good. Hitting the grass I slowed a little and allowed some people to slip by. I did OK the first 3 laps making no major mistakes. OK, some of my dismounts (off the sand in particular) were less than stellar, but I got off the bike every time! The run ups were killing me. I was very happy that I was able to ride all the ride-able parts. The sand, up the hill after the bridge, the gravel no problem. Pretty much, were I could ride I did ok. It was the off-the-bike stuff that I'm not so hot on. I played tag with Steve from Half Fast Velo for a bunch of laps. I passed him on the grass; he passed me on the barriers. Next lap, I passed him back. Finally, he passed me again and I just couldn't quite catch him. It was fun to have someone to race with though! The first two laps, I was grunting and huffing like the old man I am. "What the heck am I doing out here? This is fun??!" I thought. There were a couple corner marshals at the corner before the double-switch-back. "What was I thinking riding a single speed?" I asked them rhetorically. Finally, on the third lap, I remembered what I'd told myself when I built this bike. "I can be in back of the single speeds as easily as I can be in back of the geared bikes." OK, back to MY game plan - finish the race and take positions by others DNF'ing. Hey, it may not be very sportsman like, but it's worked for me all year. By lap 4, my back was hurting pretty badly. It's _hard_ to convince yourself to run up a hill when your lower back is screaming at you, so I ended up walking. I was getting passed regularly by the 'B" geared riders, and mostly tried to stay out of their way. My last trip through the gravel I almost did not make it, as a 'B' went down in front of me, but he hustled through and I stayed on the pedals. I tried to catch my rabbit (Steve) on the last climb, but it was not to be. My bike gearing was good (38/20) as I was able to ride all the ride-able parts of the course. I could have used something steeper on the pavement and grass, but this was a good compromise for me. Everything else on the bike worked flawlessly. Sunday, my right arm hurt like hell. I guess it's not used to throwing 20 pounds around, and I slammed my top tube into to it more than once. Yeah, my "technique" needs work. I finished 14th (of 18 starters) besting last years best 'cross finish of 19th. I was a lap down (5 laps), but I did not go a lap down until towards the end, which is better than I did last year. Plus, I was racing with 'B's, and my 'cross category is "Beginner", so I don't feel too bad about being lapped. My plan worked once again, as I beat everyone who DNF'd! Next week, there won't be a "B Single Speed" class, so I'll probably race with Jay in the 45+ class. I'm sure I'll get my butt kicked there as well, but at least I'll have the excuse that I only have one gear. See ya all there! Ken __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com |
